By Jon Chown
Watsonville has begun the process of making Freedom Boulevard safer for everybody, motorists, pedestrians and bicyclists.
The city is currently surveying residents about proposed safety changes to the thoroughfare that runs from the heart of the city, out past the airport and into the agricultural fields of Corralitos. The effort is part of the city’s Vision Zero Action Plan, which aims to reduce traffic deaths and serious injuries to zero by 2030 through safer street design. Watsonville was granted $390,000 from Caltrans to study the city’s most dangerous corridors. After a review, the city decided to focus on Freedom Boulevard.
There were 109 collisions on Freedom Boulevard from 2019 to 2023, nine of which resulted in severe injury or death. About 25 percent involved either a bicyclist or a pedestrian. The primary factors were right-of-way violations, unsafe speeds, driving under the influence and improper turning. A previous study in 2018, analyzing data from 2011 to 2017, counted 320 injury collisions at the intersections of Airport Boulevard and Freedom Boulevard, and Freedom Boulevard and Green Valley Road.
Erika Vazquez of the Watsonville Police Department said there are several factors that contribute to the high rate of accidents on Freedom, with speed topping the list. “Ultimately, roadway safety depends on all of us, drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians.”
The current plan to improve safety on Watsonville’s streets contains nearly 50 action items that include making the sidewalks wider, the bike lanes more protected, the speed limits lower, and narrowing streets to slow traffic. There are other less concrete measures such as public education, establishing a Bicyclist and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, and improving data collection on accidents. A host of regional agencies, both private and public, are partnering with the city of Watsonville on the project, including Bike Santa Cruz County, Ecology Action, the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission, Caltrans, and the Pajaro Valley Unified School District.
Vazquez said the city’s effort to address Freedom Boulevard’s safety issues has been multi-departmental.
“Our officers regularly patrol the area and conduct enforcement operations,” she said. “In addition, the Public Works Department has made high-visibility road improvements and installed a new traffic signal on Freedom Boulevard and Sydney Avenue.”
Watsonville has been studying street safety for many years. In 2018, the city surveyed residents on where they felt the most unsafe biking, driving and walking. Freedom Boulevard topped the list for cyclists and motorists and was second for pedestrians. A city study that same year found Watsonville ranked worst in California among cities of similar size for injuries and fatalities involving pedestrians under 15, and fourth worst for pedestrians overall.
“Many times, road safety also comes down to individual decisions,” said Vazquez. “We all have the responsibility to abide by the rules of the road.”
TOP PHOTO: The intersection of Freedom and Airport boulevards is one of the most dangerous in Watsonville.